Jan. 23, 2003
SAN DIEGO - The San Diego State women's water polo team was selected No. 8 in the preseason Collegiate Coaches Water Polo poll. The Aztecs appear in the same No. 8 slot in which they finished the 2002 season and one spot higher than the No. 9 position in which they started last year.
The Aztecs, coming off a 20-15 season with a 5-6 MPSF mark that left them in a sixth-place conference tie, return nine of last season's 14 letterwinners. Head coach Carin Crawford, in her fifth year leading the Aztecs, has all five of her top scorers returning. Holly Hartzell, a 2-Meter who scored SDSU's fifth-highest single-season total of 68 goals a year ago, returns for her junior year and seniors Amber Prestegard (50 goals, 17 assists, 40 steals), Casey Finnegan (40 goals, team-high 63 steals) and Heidi Matsumoto (17 assists, 19 steals) are also back.
Dominique Delgado, a driver who had 33 goals and 19 assists last year, is the top returning sophomore.
SDSU lost goalkeeper Heather Stiles and her 241 saves from a season ago, but junior Ashley Zabel (65 saves in 12 games in 2002) and Hartwick transfer Sara Daseler (473 saves in two seasons with the Hawks) are solid candidates to mind the goal in 2003.
All 11 Mountain Pacific Sports Federation teams appeared in the top 20 poll, including seven of the top eight. Stanford is the preseason No. 1, followed by No. 2 UCLA and No. 3 USC.